FORUM OVERVIEW

On June 15 and 16, 2006, the Office of the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles (OSMV), Province of British Columbia, and the Traffic Injury Research Foundation (TIRF) held a Driving and Function Forum in Vancouver, British Columbia.

A diverse group of individuals with research and applied expertise in the area of driving and function attended the Forum, including researchers, medical and legal professionals, and people who specialize in driver assessment and rehabilitation.

The Forum was the first step in a joint project between the OSMV and the British Columbia Medical Association (BCMA) to revise the British Columbia Guide for Physicians in Determining Fitness to Drive a Motor Vehicle (the Guide to Drive).

The current Guide to Drive is founded on a consensus of medical opinion regarding various medical conditions and their effect on driving. The OSMV and BCMA are replacing that model with an approach that bases the guidelines on the best available evidence and links the guidelines to functional driving ability.

The Forum included plenary panel sessions consisting of formal presentations which reviewed the current state-of-knowledge on the functions needed for safe driving and the assessment of these functions, followed by questions and discussion. Breakout workshops allowed attendees to contribute and to expand on the discussions based on their own knowledge and experience.

The primary purpose of the OSMV/TIRF Forum was to mobilize the best available evidence respecting driving and function in order to provide a “first cut” framework that would both inform the revisions to the Guide to Drive and serve as a reference for the scientific and regulatory community on, for example, areas worthy of future research.

As indicated during the Forum's closing remarks, the OSMV and BCMA are developing a new “functional” chapter for the Guide to Drive. That chapter will be based, in large part, on the information contained in both the speakers' presentations and the workshop discussions. A paper that will be used as the basis of this chapter is being produced on behalf of the OSMV. This paper will be posted here this fall.